UN Security Council Calls for an “impartial” and “transparent” investigation of Israeli Raid

After hours of emergency negotiations, the 15 Council members agreed to a statement early Tuesday condemning the “acts” that resulted in the deaths. “The Security Council deeply regrets the loss of life and injuries resulting from the use of force during the Israeli military operation in international waters against the convoy sailing to Gaza,” the statement said. ” The Council, in this context, condemns those acts which resulted in the loss of at least ten civilians and many wounded, and expresses its condolences to their families.”

The UN Security Council Calls for an “impartial” and “transparent” investigation into an Israeli commando assault on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. At least 10 people were killed in the Israeli raid. The Council requested that Israel immediately release the six ships in the convoy and the civilians it is holding. The Council also urged Israel to allow full consular access for the countries involved to retrieve their dead and wounded, and to ensure the delivery of the convoy’s aid to Gaza.

Israeli commandos clashed early Monday with pro-Palestinian activists on the Turkish ship leading the flotilla. The convoy was carrying about 700 activists and 10,000 tons of supplies to the Gaza Strip in defiance of Israel’s three-year blockade of the region.

Obviously, too, many of those who sailed toward Gaza were not “peace activists.” While those aboard five of the vessels in the flotilla did not violently oppose the IDF soldiers who came to intercept them, the video footage released by the IDF in the course of Monday confirmed earlier official descriptions by Israel of soldiers being premeditatedly and ruthlessly attacked as they tried to board the largest of the vessels, the Mavi Marmara.